How to Recognize Gum Inflammation?

Swollen and red gums? It's okay, it will pass soon, most of us think. The gums can indeed be temporarily irritated due to stuck food, but in most cases extensive swelling and bleeding indicate inflammation of the gums. The dangers of ignoring such signs are described below.

What Symptoms to Pay Attention to?

Healthy gums have a pale pink color, elastic structure, and gingival papillae between the teeth are not enlarged. During daily dental hygiene, there should be no discomfort or bleeding. If the gum is inflamed, the following signs will indicate this:

• Bleeding while brushing teeth

• Swelling, gums may cover part of the crown of the tooth;

• Redness, from bright pink to dark red;

• Bad smell from the mouth;

• Unpleasant taste, even after hygiene;

• The gum is inflamed and sore, you feel discomfort;

• Softness, and looseness of the gums.

  
  

There are cases when the gum bleeds due to microtrauma, for example, if the bristles are very stiff and the pressure when brushing the teeth is stronger than necessary. Or you bit off an apple and hurt the papilla with the peel. In this case, bleeding occurs once and quickly passes.

Why Do Gums Get Inflamed

Gum disease is mistakenly considered an age-related problem but, in fact, inflammation of periodontal tissues can occur in children, young people, as well as in the elderly.

The causes of inflammation are:

• Poor oral hygiene, accumulation of plaque, especially tartar;

• Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract;

• Hormonal changes, more often during pregnancy;

• Incorrect treatment, prosthetics, in which the structures exert excessive pressure on the gums;

• Mechanical injuries of the gums - strong pressure with a toothbrush or improper use of dental floss.

  
  

The initial stage of inflammation is called gingivitis. The disease quickly progresses to more complex forms - periodontitis, if the cause of the process is not identified and eliminated in time.

Methods of Gum Treatment 

It is possible to correctly prescribe treatment and relieve inflammation of the gums only at the dentist’s office. Self-treatment can relieve the problem but not solve it.

Ultrasonic teeth cleaning

At the first signs of inflammation of the gums, comprehensive professional oral hygiene is prescribed. The hygienist removes dental deposits - plaques and tartar and checks the condition of the gums. If a pocket with a depth of more than 3 mm is detected, a consultation with a periodontist is appointed in order to plan further therapy.

Curettage

If the patient has deep gingival pockets, the most effective method of cleaning the root surface will be instrumental. With special tools - curettes, the doctor carefully manually cleans deposits and affected periodontal tissues and polishes the roots.

Curettage can be performed by a closed or open method (with a gum incision). The method is selected depending on several factors: the depth of the pockets, the presence of tartar on the root of the tooth under the gum, the area of the procedure, and the mobility of the teeth.

Vector therapy

This procedure prevents the formation of tartar and promotes a strong connection between the gum and the tooth, which leads to a decrease in the depth of periodontal pockets. With a special nozzle, the doctor delivers ultrasonic vibrations with a suspension for high-quality polishing of the surface of the roots of the teeth, absolutely painless and non-traumatic. To maintain a positive result after the main treatment, vector therapy can be carried out in a course of several procedures, with a break of 3-6 months.

All of the above procedures can be used in combination, with the obligatory supervision of a doctor and tracking the dynamics of changes.

How to Keep Gums Healthy?

• Maintain a high level of personal oral hygiene, and regularly remove plaque from the hygienist, preventing its calcification;

  
  

• Check your dentifrices. The bristles of the toothbrush should not be hard and traumatic. Toothbrushes should be selected according to the size of the interdental spaces. If the contacts between the teeth are very tight - give preference to dental floss or an irrigator;

  
  

• It is important to follow the correct technique of daily hygiene. Do not apply excessive pressure when moving the toothbrush, gently clean the space between the teeth, without bringing the floss under the gum or sharp, cutting movements;

  
  

• If you already have a diagnosis made by a periodontist and have started treatment, do not forget about further maintenance therapy. Only a systematic approach allows you to maintain positive results of treatment and prevents gum disease from progressing.